Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis User Guide Beta Version – May 2018
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Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis User Guide Beta version – May 2018 TOOL DEVELOPERS Willow Battista, Alexis N. Rife, Monica Goldberg, Jake Kritzer and Matt Tinning CONTRIBUTORS An earlier version of this tool was originally developed by Mohammed Aatish Khan and Ariana Spawn, Masters students in the Yale Environmental Protection Clinic, under the guidance of Alexis Rife and Jake Kritzer. VERSION This tool is being released as a beta version that will be updated as we receive feedback from fishery practitioners. The beta designation is a recognition of the value of stakeholder input, which we know will make this tool even more successful in supporting sustainable fisheries management around the world. We invite you to share your feedback on the Sustainable Fisheries Toolkit website. TOOL COMPONENTS User Guide Excel Tool Any views expressed in this tool and associated materials are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the contributors or their organizations. Any errors are those of the authors. This tool and any supporting materials are decision-support tools and results should be interpreted as such. Neither EDF, nor the authors, take responsibility for any outcomes that result from the use of this tool. Copyright © 2018 Environmental Defense Fund. All rights reserved. Battista, W., Rife, A. N., Goldberg, M., Kritzer, J. and Tinning, M. (2018). Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis. Environmental Defense Fund. 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS BACKGROUND ..................................................................................................................... 3 Intended audience .............................................................................................................. 3 When to use this tool .......................................................................................................... 3 Limitations ........................................................................................................................... 3 INSTRUCTIONS .................................................................................................................... 4 Getting started .................................................................................................................... 4 Before you begin ................................................................................................................. 5 Step 1: Define scope ........................................................................................................... 5 Step 2: Score each attribute ................................................................................................ 5 Step 3: Review results ........................................................................................................ 6 Step 4: Interpret and reflect upon results ............................................................................ 6 Step 5 (optional): Create schematic of governance system ................................................. 7 Step 6 (optional): Hire local experts for additional questions ............................................... 8 GLOSSARY ........................................................................................................................... 9 REFERENCES ......................................................................................................................11 2 BACKGROUND Governance consists of the institutions, processes, roles, responsibilities and resources that collectively determine how societal goals are met. Policy consists of laws, treaties, regulations and other instruments that create and limit the power of institutions to achieve objectives, including by defining processes and establishing rights. Strong and well-designed fisheries law and policy and an effective governance system are critical components for ensuring the durability of a sustainable and effective fisheries management system. Purpose of this tool The Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis is used to evaluate the presence, absence and completeness of key policy and governance attributes in a fishery system. The analysis allows the user to diagnose the weaknesses of the existing fisheries law and governance system that might create barriers to effective management and reform. Fishery reform projects can then be designed to account for these gaps and weaknesses, or, where possible, they can be addressed directly during the implementation of a project. Intended audience The Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis is meant to be used by fishery managers, non- governmental organizations (NGOs) and other practitioners to understand the policy and governance landscape of a fishery system. An analysis performed with the tool can help inform policy reform strategies or highlight areas where governance systems and institutions can be strengthened. When to use this tool The tool can be used at various stages of the fisheries reform and management process. During the Strategic Scoping phase of the fishery reform process, it may be helpful to use this tool to initially analyze the highest relevant level of governance, such as at the national or international level, to identify major challenges or gaps in the governance system that will need to be addressed in order to facilitate fishery reforms. The tool can also be used at a regional or local level to evaluate the presence or absence of key attributes at the fishery scale during the Assessment and Evaluation phase of a project. See the Sustainable Fisheries Toolkit website for more information on the phases of a fishery reform process. The Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis is designed to be completed in a half day or less. However, this estimate varies greatly based on the user’s knowledge of the governance and policies of the fishery system being analyzed. If additional research is required to score the fishery system, additional time may be needed to complete the tool. The tool can be completed by conducting desk research, reviewing existing laws and regulations and interviewing local experts. It is meant to be a starting point to understanding the gaps and enabling conditions of the governance system in a given country or region. Limitations The tool is based on research and literature conducted on key attributes which enable and contribute to successful fisheries management and governance. As such, it is inclusive and many systems will not meet all attributes. However, it will guide users to important gaps or areas of 3 underperformance that may affect implementation and which may need to be addressed in order to ensure the durability of sustainable management. In addition, the differing number of Attributes within each Category may emphasize some Attributes over others. In other words, in Categories that are made up of fewer Attributes, each individual Attribute score will have a greater relative impact on the overarching Category’s score than in Categories made up of a great number of Attributes. This is something users of the tool should be aware of as they interpret the results of their analysis (see below). The accuracy of the results also depends on the expertise and knowledge of those completing the tool. We highly recommend that users consult with multiple system experts when scoring the attributes in this tool, and seek to corroborate scores with multiple sources whenever possible. INSTRUCTIONS Getting started This User Guide is designed to walk you through the Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis. The Tool is a Microsoft Excel workbook divided into multiple tables: (1) Overview, (2) Instructions, (3) Policy and Governance Analysis, (4) Results and (5) Numbered References. The first two tabs provide a brief introduction and a summary of the instructions found in this User Guide, for easy reference. The third tab contains the Tool itself—this is where you will score each of the attributes that contribute to an effective governance and policy system. The fourth tab will capture the results of your analysis. The fifth and final tab includes supporting references that were used to develop the Tool, which may be useful if you want to conduct further research. To begin, open the Fisheries Policy and Governance Analysis Excel file, which will open on the Overview tab. Navigate to the Policy and Governance tab. Orient yourself to the tool: Column B contains the eight Categories, Column C contains the Category Definitions and Column D contains the individual Attributes that make up each category. The eight Categories are used to organize and classify individual attributes that influence the efficacy of a governance and policy system. These eight categories are: Accountable and Transparent Adequate and Effective Monitoring and Enforcement Authority Adequate Regulatory Authority Clear Rules Defining Objectives and Directives, Decision-making and Deliberation Clear Standards for Protecting Marine Ecosystems and Science-Based Management Facilitates and Protects Stakeholder Participation Facilitates Secure Fishing Rights Operates at Appropriate Scale Within each of these Categories are a set of more precise Attributes, each of which captures a specific component of the system. Users will score each of these Attributes (following the process described in this User Guide), generating the overarching scores for each Category, which can be found on the Results tab. 4 Also note that beneath the main results on the Results tab there is a box containing results for Governance System Components.